Cushioned rack for containers on flatcars

ABSTRACT

Cushioned container support for supporting containers on flatcars. The support includes a rack for one long container or two shorter containers having bolsters extending across the rack at each end of the rack and intermediate the ends of the rack. Each bolster has twist locks at its opposite ends for locking the container to the car. The twist locks intermediate the ends of the rack are retractable to accommodate a longer container to be supported on the rack and on the end bolsters. The rack and bolsters are supported on elastomeric shear pads bolted to the floor of the car between guides for the rack. The bolsters have parallel depending friction members spaced inwardly of the guide members. The friction members form side beams and a retarding means for the rack and the shear pads are disposed between the friction members. During elongation of the elastomeric shear pads upon heavy impact stresses, the friction members are pulled down and frictionally engage the guides to slow down maximum travel of the bolsters and rack.

Unite States Patent [19] Pratt et al.

[111 3,834,321 1451 Sept. 10,1974

[ CUSHIONED RACK FOR CONTAINERS ON FLATCARS [75] Inventors: Robert A.Pratt, Oak Brook; Keith W. Broling, Olympia Fields; Richard A. Tatina,La Grange, all of ll].

[73] Assignee: Portec, lnc., Oak Brook, Ill.

[22] Filed: Oct. 18, 1973 [21] Appl. No.: 407,412

52 11s. c1. 105/366 A, 105/366 D 51 1m. 01 B65j 1/24 [58] Field ofSearch 105/366 R, 366 A, 366 D,

105/368 T, 368 R; 248/119 R; 280/179 R [56] References Cited UNITEDSTATES PATENTS 3,354,838 11/1967 Mowatt-Larssen 105/366 D 3,554,134l/l97l Brown 105/366 D 3,721,199 3/1973 Hassenauer 105/366 A 57 vABSTRACT Cushioned container support for supporting containers onflatcars. The support includes a rack for one long container or twoshorter containers having bolsters extending across the rack at each endof the rack and intermediate the ends of the rack. Each bolster hastwist locks at its opposite ends for locking the container to the car.The twist locks intermediate the ends of the rack are retractable toaccommodate a longer container to be supported on the rack and on theend bolsters. The rack and bolsters are supported on elastomeric shearpads bolted to the floor of the car between guides for the rack. Thebolsters have parallel depending friction members spaced inwardly of theguide members. The friction members form side beams and a retardingmeans for the rack and the shear pads are disposed between the frictionmembers. During elongation of the elastomeric shear pads upon heavyimpact stresses, the friction members are pulled down and frictionallyengage the guides to slow down maximum travel of the bolsters and rack.

9 Claims, 4 Drawing Figures CUSHIONED RACK FOR CONTAINERS ON FLATCARSFIELD OF THE INVENTION Cushioning container support on flatcars of thetype found in Class 105-366.

BACKGROUND, SUMMARY AND ADVANTAGES OF INVENTION The Patents to Wille eta1. U.S. Pat. No. 3,437,055; Hammonds U.S. Pat. No. 3,479,969; E.Mowatt- Larssen U.S. Pat. No. 3,354,838 and U.S. Pat. No. 3,626,969;Clejan U.S. Pat. No. 3,102,646 and Brown U.S.Pat. No. 3,554,134 showcontainer mounting structures on flatcars in which a container or afifthwheel structure is supported on cushioning members.

The cushioning system of the present invention isan improvement on thedisclosures of the foregoing patents in that the containers are lockedto the car on spaced bolsters carried on a cushioned rack. The rack isof a length to space the bolsters to support two short containers or onelong container. The bolsters are supported on elastomeric shear padsextending between friction members forming beams for the rack. Thebolsters are so arranged as to enable the locking of short and longcontainers to the rack on the car. The friction members extend betweenparallel guide members secured to the underframe of the car, and therack with bolsters is bolted to the shear pads on plates. The frictionmembers come into engagement with the guide members upon elongation ofthe shear pads, caused by impact, slowing down travel of the containersand rack upon impact and damping rebound thereof. The bolsters carrytwist locks locking the container to the car. The twist locks on theintermediate bolsters are retractable to accommodate a long container tobe supported on single racks on opposite sides of the intermediatebolsters.

The advantages of the present invention are in the provision of asimplified hold-down structure enabling containers'of various lengths tobesupported on a rack through bolsters and conventional .twist locks,and the adaptation of the system to a wide variety of flatcars.

A further advantage of the invention is in the simplification of thecushion support making it practical to use twist locks to lockcontainers to the deck of a car and avoid removal of the center twistlocks when coupling conjunction with the accompanying drawings, althoughvariations and modifications may be effected without departing from thespirit and scope of the novel concepts of the disclosure.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a top plan view of a flatcarhaving container locking and cushioning means embodying the principlesof the present invention extending along the deck of the car.

FIG. 2 is a view in side elevation of the car shown in FIG. 1 with apair of adjacent containers shown by broken lines as locked to the car.

FIG. 3 is a transverse sectional view taken substantially along lineIIl-III of FIG. 1 and drawn to an enlarged scale; and

FIG. 4 is an enlarged partial fragmentary longitudinal sectional view ofa bolster and its cushioning means, with parts broken away and certainother parts shown in longitudinal section.

DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENT OF INVENTION In FIGS. 1 and 2 of thedrawings, we have diagrammatically shown a portion of a railway fiatcar10 having a flat deck 1 having a rack 12 mounted thereon for carrying apair of containers 13 in end-to-end relation with respect to each other.Two racks can be mounted on the same car, depending on the length of thecar, each car carrying two 20-foot containers or one forty-footcontainer.

The rack 12, illustratively shown herein, comprises a pair of connectedparallel spaced longitudinally extending beams 14 which may be formed bytwo pairs of parallel spaced angle irons 15. The horizontal legs of theangle irons 15 may serve as friction motion restraining members in amanner which will hereinafter more clearly appear as this specificationproceeds. The angle irons 15 are spaced apart at intervals by spacerplates 16 and are braced between bolsters 17,17 by cross beams 18 andgussets 19 to rigidify the beam structure.

' ate bolsters have conventional twist locks 21 and 22 re spectivelyprojecting upwardly therefrom for coming into locking engagement with acontainer 13 as the container is placed thereon. The twist locks arelocked ioning means, making it adaptable for various types of flatcarswith little, if any, modification.

A further advantage of the invention is the provision of a cushionedbolster and rack assembly accommodating cushioning movement of acontainer relative to the deck of a flatcar and restraining movement ofthe container upon excessive impact shocks by friction, by elastomericshear pads pulling the load down towards the deck upon elongation of theshear pads caused by impact and excessive shocks, to bring the frictionmeans into operation.

Other objects, features and advantages of the invention will be readilyapparent from the following description of a preferred embodimentthereof, taken in into engagement with keeper holes (not shown) in thebottom of the container and hold the container to the bolsters uponturning movement of handles 23 in a manner well known to those skilledin the art so not herein shown or described further. The twist locks 22on the two intermediate bolsters are preferably retractabletwist locksand may retract beneath the top surfaces of the bolsters upon operationof handles 23, operative to both bring the twist locks into their lockedpositions and to retract the twist locks below the surfaces of thebolsters, to accommodate a single rack 12 to hold down a forty-footcontainer. The twist locks 22 are shown and described in U.S. Pat. No.3,586,286, granted to Robert A. Pratt on June 22, 1971, the disclosureof which is incorporated herein by reference.

The retractable twist locks, therefore, need not herein be shown ordescribed further.

Referring now in particular to FIGS. 3 and 4 showing the support for therack and bolsters on the flatcar and cushioning the shock loads on thecontainer, the floor of the car may be cut away to receive a supportmember 25, which may be of any selected form and is herein shown asbeing in the form of a modified angle having a relatively longhorizontal leg. The vertical leg of said angle may be welded orotherwise secured to the frame structure of the car. The horizontal legof said angle may be substantially flush with the floor of the car andsecured at its inner end to a vertical leg of an angle 27 extendingupwardly from the frame structure of the car and welded or otherwisesecured thereto. The vertical leg of the angle 27 may be an elongatedleg and extends along an inner angle or friction member and parallel toan angle 29 extending along the outer friction member 15 and parallelthereto. The angles 27 and 29 form guides for the friction members 55and rack. They also form retarding and sbubbing means for said rack assaid friction members are pulled down by elongation of elastomeric shearpads 30. The elastomeric shear pads may be formed from rubber or one ofthe well-known substitutes for rubber. The pad itself is known to theart, so need not be described herein except as to its function andoperation.

The shear pads 30 extend longitudinally of the car and are at oppositeends of each bolster 17. Eight shear pads support and cushion each rack.Each shear pad and its mounting is of the same construction and operatein the same manner, so one shear pad only need herein be shown anddescribed in detail. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, each shear pad 30 has agenerally rectangular base and top surface and the side and end wallsthereof uniformly diverge from a rectangular base plate 31 molded intothe base of said shear pad. The top surface of the shear pad is alsorectangular and has a top plate 32 molded thereinto. The plates 31 and32 extend for the length of the shear pad and form a mounting means forthe rack to the shear pad and for the shear pad to the railway car. Theplate 31 has a plurality of depending studs 33 welded or otherwisesecured thereto and extending through the horizontal leg of the framemember and bolted thereto as by nuts 35. The plate 32 also has studs 36welded or otherwise secured thereto and extending upwardly therefromthrough a spacer l6 outwardly of the bolster l7 and is bolted to saidspacer as by nuts 37.

The bolsters 17 at the end of the car are shown in FIG. 1 as spacedinwardly of the shear pads to position the shear pads outwardly of theend bolsters. This arrangement is carried out with each bolster tostructurally balance the beams 15 and reduce the stresses on said beams.

The vertical legs of the angles 27 and 29 form guides for the verticallegs of the beams or angles 15 and being closely adjacent the verticallegs of said angles, guide and thereby cooperate with the shear padswith a force proportional to the shear'stresses of the shear pads andincreasing with an increase in shear stress of the elastomeric members.Said shear pads also dampen rebound of the rack and container carriedthereon.

Where a second rack is placed on the same car, as fragmentarily shown inFIG. 1, the spacing of the second rack from the rack just described mustbe sufficient to accommodate full travel of the rack and containerthereon, with sufficient spacing to provide a margin of safety.

The shear pads 30 and friction members 15 thus may cushion longitudinaltravel of the rack and containers thereon, both in forward directionscaused by impact and in return directions, and guide the containers formovement in a rectilinear path in cooperation with the guides 27 and 29as they damp longitudinal, lateral and vertical movement of the rack andcontainers, and thus avoid damage to the containers and their contents,and make it safer and more practical to carry containers on the deck ofa tlatcar.

We claim as our invention:

1. In a cushioning arrangement for containers on flatcars and incombination with a flatcar having a deck,

parallel spaced bolsters extending across the deck,

means supporting said bolsters for movement together, a twist lock ateach end of each bolster for holding a container to the car,

cushioning means for said bolsters and supporting means and thecontainer locked thereto including parallel spaced friction guidemembers extending longitudinally of the car,

guide means for said supporting means and friction guide membersextending along the deck of the car,

said friction guide members forming guide means for said bolsters incooperation with said cushioning means and guide members and coming intooperation as the impact forces increase to cushion and restrictlongitudinal movement of the bolsters and to damp rebound thereof.

2. The tie-down of claim 1, in which the cushioning means compriseelastomeric cushioning members firmly secured to the deck of the car andto the friction members supporting said bolsters and pulling down on thefriction members and bolsters to frictionally restrict movement of thebolsters upon impact with increasing force as the impact forcesincrease.

3. The tie-down of claim 1, in which the means supporting said bolsterscomprise a rack in which said friction members form side beams thereof.

4. The tie-down of claim 3, including intermediate bolsters in whichtwist locks are carried at opposite ends of the bolsters to engage andhold the container to the bolsters, and in which the twist locks carriedby the intermediate bolsters are retractable.

5. In a tie-down and cushioning arrangement for containers and the like,

a flatcar having a deck,

a rack extending along said deck,

a bolster at each end of said rack and a pair of bolsters intermediatethe ends of said rack,

a twist lock carried adjacent each end of each bolster for locking acontainer thereto,

retractable twist locks carried by the intermediate bolsters,

means supporting said bolsters above the deck of the flatcar forcushioning movement therealong upon impact,

parallel guides projecting upwardly of the deck of the car inassociation with each of said bolsters, parallel spaced beams betweensaid guides and depending from said bolsters and forming frictionmembers in cooperation with said guides, and cushioning members carriedbetween said beams and supporting said rack for cushioned movementlongitudinally of the car.

6. The locking and cushioning arrangement of claim 5, wherein eightcushioning members support each rack and the cushioning members areelastomeric shear pads elongating upon impact and bringing said frictionmembers into engagement with said guides upon excessive impact forces tocushion and damp movement of high impact speeds of said rack uponexcessive impact forces and damp rebound thereof.

9. The container locking and cushioning arrangement of claim 8, in whichthe cushioning members are spaced outwardly of the bolsters, and inwhich the guide members and friction members have horizontal legs cominginto frictional engagement with each other as pulled down by the shearpads of said bolsters.

1. In a cushioning arrangement for containers on flatcars and incombination with a flatcar having a deck, parallel spaced bolstersextending across the deck, means supporting said bolsters for movementtogether, a twist lock at each end of each bolster for holding acontainer to the car, cushioning means for said bolsters and supportingmeans and the container locked thereto including parallel spacedfriction guide members extending longitudinally of the car, guide meansfor said supporting means and friction guide members extending along thedeck of the car, said friction guide members forming guide means forsaid bolsters in cooperation with said cushioning means and guidemembers and coming into operation as the impact forces increase tocushion and restrict longitudinal movement of the bolsters and to damprebound thereof.
 2. The tie-down of claim 1, in which the cushioningmeans comprise elastomeric cushioning members firmly secured to the deckof the car and to the friction members supporting said bolsters andpulling down on the friction members and bolsters to frictionallyrestrict movement of the bolsters upon impact with increasing force asthe impact forces increase.
 3. The tie-down of claim 1, in which themeans supporting said bolsters comprise a rack in which said frictionmembers form side beams thereof.
 4. The tie-down of claim 3, includingintermediate bolsters in which twist locks are carried at opposite endsof the bolsters to engage and hold the container to the bolsters, and inwhich the twist locks carried by the intermediate bolsters areretractable.
 5. In a tie-down and cushioning arrangement for containersand the like, a flatcar having a deck, a rack extending along said deck,a bolster at each end of said rack and a pair of bolsters intermediatethe ends of said rack, a twist lock carried adjacent each end of eachbolster for locking a container thereto, retractable twist locks carriedby the intermediate bolsters, means supporting said bolsters above thedeck of the flatcar for cushioning movement therealong upon impact,parallel guides projecting upwardly of the deck of the car inassociation with each of said bolsters, parallel spaced beams betweensaid guides and depending from said bolsters and forming frictionmembers in cooperation with said guides, and cushioning members carriedbetween said beams and supporting said rack for cushioned movementlongitudinally of the car.
 6. The locking and cushioning arrangement ofclaim 5, wherein eight cushioning members support each rack and thecushioning members are elastomeric shear pads elongating upon impact andbringing said friction members into engagement with said guides uponexcessive impact forces to cushion and damp movement of the rack alongthe car.
 7. The locking and cushioning arrangement for containers onflatcars of claim 6, in which the elastomeric shear pads are bolted tothe deck of the car and to said rack to form a cushioning supporttherefor.
 8. The container locking and cushioning arrangement of claim7, in which the guide members extend along opposite sides of said beamsforming said friction members and cooperate therewith to be frictionallyengaged by said friction members to frictionally restrain high impactspeeds of said rack upon excesSive impact forces and damp reboundthereof.
 9. The container locking and cushioning arrangement of claim 8,in which the cushioning members are spaced outwardly of the bolsters,and in which the guide members and friction members have horizontal legscoming into frictional engagement with each other as pulled down by theshear pads of said bolsters.